Herb, perennial, dioecious, rhizomatous, forming patches to 1 (–1.5) m across; cluster roots present. Rhizome 2–4 mm diam., densely pubescent with white hairs, at surface level rather than buried. Culms spaced up to 0.5 cm apart, erect, terete, 30–50 cm long, 0.8–1.2 mm diam., glabrous, striate, finely tuberculate, unbranched below the inflorescence; internodes 1.5–7.5 cm long. Sheaths 9–12 mm long, red-to dark-brown, glabrous, obtuse; lamina erect, 1.8–3.5 mm long; auricles absent. Male spikelets axillary on short primary branches, 2–5 per culm, narrow-ovoid, 6.0–8.5 mm long, c. 2.0 mm wide; glumes 9–13, all fertile, ovate, 3.0–3.8 mm long, brown, glabrous; mucro to 1.5 mm long. Female spikelets terminal on short branches, 6.5–7 (–10) mm long, to c. 5 mm wide, with 1 glume, 1-flowered; glume ovate, 4.5–5.0 mm long, rigid, pubescent when young, brown, with a thin membranous margin; mucro erect, to 2 mm long. Male flowers: tepals 4, membranous; pale brown; outer tepals c. 2.5 mm long; filaments 3.0–4.0 mm long; anthers c. 1.4–1.6 mm long, exserted. Female flowers: tepals brown; outer tepals lanceolate, subulate, longer than inner tepals, 4–5 mm long; inner tepals broad, flat, acuminate, 2.5–3.5 mm long; ovary 2-locular, often only 1 loculus developing; style branches 2, shortly connate. Capsule c. 2.5 mm long. Culm anatomy: chlorenchyma of 2 or 3 layers of short peg cells, interrupted by sclerenchyma ridges opposite outer vascular bundles, central cavity usually present.
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